Rituals are ubiquitous in our personal lives—enacted before performances or during family holidays—and in our interactions with firms—from sports fans doing the “wave” to customers being served wine after an elaborate uncorking.

This talk shares the benefits of rituals in domains ranging from grief recovery to chocolate consumption to team performance to singing Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’.” Michael Norton outlines the psychological underpinnings of rituals, demonstrating how they can lead to increased immersion in experiences, greater feelings of control, reduced anxiety, and increased liking for teammates.

How can organizations—from companies to governments—gain the trust of their key stakeholders to increase both buying and buy in? Customers frequently feel that they are being overcharged for services that seem costless (such as ATM machines), while citizens feel that they are overtaxed for services they believe they do not use.

This talk features speaker Michael Norton at his best as a business and financial expert, as he demonstrates how increasing operational transparency—showing the work being done on stakeholders’ behalf—can help organizations (re)gain trust, increase satisfaction, and trigger action.